1996 was the 50th anniversary of the Caux conference centre which meant so much to our family life and to thousands of others around the world. I have been there many times and I wanted to give chapter and verse on some of the stories of reconciliation with which it has been involved over the 50 years.

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The Forgiveness Factor

Stories of Hope in a World of Conflict

Forewords by Rajmohan Gandhi and Joseph Montville

“The Forgiveness Factor lifts the spirits. It is a record of how the inspired sanity of policy and the attendant physical reconstruction of nations have come through forgiveness”(Kim Beazley Sr., 32 years in the Australian Parliament)

“This important book provides an inspirational reference for those inclined to the spiritual call of peacemaking”(Douglas M. Johnson, Executive Vice President, Center for Strategic and International Studies, USA)

"Michael Henderson will make you stop and think about possibilities - for peace in our world, our communities, and our own souls. In his captivating style, he writes about miracles small and large that raise hope that the longings of all human beings to give and receive forgiveness and understanding might someday be fulfilled."(Marian Wright Edelman, President, The Children's Defense Fund)

"This book deserves serious study for the point it makes - that changes of heart are key to changing conflictual relationships. That point has earned a place at the center of the political resolution of conflict."(Harold Saunders, Former US Assistant Secretary of State)

"Sometimes history, selective history, gets us by the throat, threatening revenge and breathing new life into a chain of repression and retaliation. Here, however, in this book on the possibility and power of forgiveness, courtesy of Michael Henderson, we have a selection of facts from the recent past that do the exact opposite: they kindle the hope that we may yet catch history's hand and guide it along calmer, safer pathways."(Rajmohan Gandhi, Research professor, former senator, grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, in his foreword)

"I believe strongly that the values and spiritual qualities revealed in these chapters will ultimately prevail in the contest and that scientific knowledge of human needs will confirm the power of spiritual conviction to shape an entirely new international culture of preventive diplomacy and conflict resolution initiative."(Joseph V. Montville, Former diplomat and a Director of the Program on Preventive Diplomacy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies,Washington, DC. In his foreword.)

"This century has been one of the bloodiest in recorded history. Much that promised to enlighten and save us—religion, technology, education—seems only to have encouraged a more manic and efficient killing.

All of which makes Michael Henderson's new book, The Forgiveness Factor—Stories of Hope in a World of Conflict, a welcome discovery.

It brings a piece of happy news: Some of the world's most bitter and violent enemies are forgiving one another. It is happening in Cambodia, in South Africa, in Japan, in Russia. In fact, in places where the most unbelievable atrocities have occurred, some of the people who have been most brutalized are leading the way to forgiveness."(Dallas Morning News)

"The Forgiveness Factor offers a unique perspective and should be on thereading list for every international studies curriculum."(Bookwatch)

British and American copies available from AmazonFormat: p/backISBN: 1-85 239-024-7Pages: 290Publisher: Grosvenor Books